Health bosses in Bristol have set themselves the ambitious target of stopping the rise in obesity by 2022.

Statistics show a portly 57 per cent of adults in the city are classed as overweight or obese with more than a third of under 18s falling into the same category.

Now Bristol City Council, Public Heath England and the NHS want to cut these fatty statistics into shape with an information programme and help groups across the city.

Called The Great Weight Group, the partners want Bristolians to make “informed choice” about food and become better educated as to what makes a healthy lifestyle.

The Healthy Weight Strategic Plan Progress Report states: “Our vision for Bristol is for every citizen to have information available to them to make an informed choice and have access to the necessary facilities to enable them to live a healthy lifestyle.

Health bosses are on a mission to help people fight the flab in Bristol

“By 2022 we want to see the trend in the number of people recorded as being overweight and obese to stop rising and start declining.”

Statistics collected in 2015 show the average weight of Bristolians varies from ward to ward.

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Hartcliffe and Hengrove are the fattest wards, with 66 per cent of residents classed as overweight or obese.

In contrast, Windmill Hill and Central wards are the thinnest in Bristol with an average of 29 per cent of residents classed as obese or overweight.

The figures show areas of greater deprivation have a higher number of residents who are overweight or obese.

Percentage of people overweight or obese in Bristol - by area

NHS Bristol Quality of Life survey

The exact plan for the Great Weight Debate has not been finalised, however the group hopes to offer training to schools and businesses, advice to parents and families, improve participation in sport and, in some cases, offer one-to-one support.

The campaign will follow in the footsteps of a programme which was successfully rolled out across London.

The report states: “Different people will require different approaches to achieving or maintaining a healthy weight.

“The majority of people will only require the information on what constitutes a healthy lifestyle to achieve this goal.